The Brookhaven leader., 1887-07-28
A BOOMERANG.
Private John Allen Answers HIS
Slandorers and Shows up More
of Hamilton's Devious
Ways.

the the late lessees of the Mississi p.
pi Penitentiary.
In 1850 Mr.. r. II. Allen, my
brother, became one Of the lessees oi
the penitentiary, and at his request.
with about thirIy-two other gentle
men, | became one of the sureties
on the bond of the lessees to the
State, the bond being mostly made
by friends of II. II. Allen. In the
latter part of 1883 or early in 1884
another gentleman and mys eli
purchased farm in Lee county, on
which were ut the time some con-
victs that had been hired and work
ed by the former owner. was at
that time the attorney for the com
mission house Of Allen, West &
Bush OF New Orleans, and had for
/ collection claim of theirs against
/ Hamilton & Hoskins or j. :. Ham.
ilton, | do not remember which.
The claim was for money advan.
ced on cotton to be shipped, which
of course was never done, and my
clients found themselves unable to
get eithe: their money or the cotton,
but J. ). Hamilton proposed to pay
the debt in convict labor if they
could use it. In order To collect
this debt, my partner and l agreed
To keep some cOnvicts on our place
and work it out. 1t was well under.
stood between Hamilton, Allen,
| West Il Bush and us before we took
| the hands, and all the time we had
j them, that their hire was TO be paid
on this debt. AT the close of 1885,
the charges Hamilton had against
me about covered the debt and VIC
agreed to balance accounts, and
wrote TO my clients to charge The
debt TO my partner and me, and !
am sure Hamilton has never been
called on for it since and has never
paid it. in any other way.
In 1856, my partner and | agreed
To Keep ten or The convicts on oul
place for which we were to pay the
usual price for convict labor, twelve
and one half dollars per month
But before the money was paid, ear.
/ ~ in 1856, my partner and | were
! both sued as sureties on the bond OF
The lessees for $39,420.0O, the
amount due the State for rent OF
1885.
| l make an extract from letter
! from j. 5. Hamilton, dated june
! 7lh, 1886, to my partner. This was
after we were sued. He writes
Il have written John Allen that l.,
need not now trouble himself about
paving for the hands, but the mat
ter can rest until we settle our mat.
ter with the State" SO it will bt
seen there was no misunderstood
ing about this matter until became
engaged in the prosecution of Ham.
iltOn for assassination. The hire oil
ten convicts for 1886 amounted to
about $l,450 as they rendered the
account to me, and this money
have been ready and willing to pay
at any time if it could be applied to
the payment of the Indebtedness to
the State tor which the State seeks
to hold me bound. Imade The pro
position to the Attorney General oil
the State.
Instead of the Indebtedness of the
State being settled,I have since been
sued on The bond for 80, APO. 90 for
the rent of 1886, making $7S, $40
90 the State is now claiming off the
hondsmen, and | ain defending these
suits for myself and the other
sureties.
This is the full extent of my
individual connection with the pen
itentiary and the convicts; and any
other statement, intimation or lu-
situation is maliciously false and
unworthy of belief, and It's author
or circulator contemplate SANDER,
er. AS to any other statement or
intimation given out by one OF
Hamilton's organs that had trans
ferred my property to avoid the
consequences of the suit on the
bond, l will say that the same is
without the shadow of foundation,
and is as base as it is false.
have more property IN my own
name now than | ever had before in
my life, and have. subject TO be
taken under judgment in favor
of the State or anyone else if one
should be rendered against me,
property of three times the amount
for which | am qualified on the
bond. But suppose have trans
terred my property to avoid the
debt, why should the personal organ
of j. S. Hamilton complain, when
Hamilton, one of the principals of
the bond, has managed TO get in the
name of his wife his palatial resi-
dence with surrounding farm in
jackson, and his farm in the Mis-
sissippi bottom, all of which he
acquired while running the peniten-
tiary? and what to Hamilton or
said organ does it matter whether
or not / heat him out of the mon
ely for hire of convicts? He has
used his claim against me to pay
two different debts already, and l do
not know how many more times he
will use it. He first agreed for me
to pay to Allen, West Il Bush. but
has since transferred the same clai 10
to the reDresontatiyps nf .Joshna